top of page
Search

Rose Roots Newsletter August 2026: Harvest Time

We're swimming in squash and tallying up our tomatoes. Hope you all are having fun with the abundance of your gardens and enjoying the respite from watering with recent rains.


In this Issue:

  • The Heart Collectors & Potluck Recap

  • Harvest for the Veggie Van!

  • Coming Up (Nature Journaling Class! Big Volunteer Event! More Live Music! )

  • Water Usage Update

  • This & That (Security Alert - read this! DUG Fall Supply Sale!)


The Heart Collectors

What a delightful evening in the garden when so many of us turned out to hear Australian band The Heart Collectors play amidst their US tour! Their 60’s and 70’s inspired folk music had everyone tapping their toes and cheering - and they even gave us a sneak peek of some unreleased music! Their talents included noise makers, drums, guitar, melodic banjo, bowed mandolin, and haunting cello.  Thanks to everyone who contributed to the delicious pot-luck dinner and who came early for set-up and stayed after for tear-down.


If you loved the band so much you're up for an encore, Kymrie, Reuben, Mobius, and Tristan are playing their last concert of their tour at Swallow Hill on September 4th and tickets are still available here!



Keep Donating to the Veggie Van!

Keep up the great donations to the Veggie Van! We've got about 11 more weeks to go!

  • When: Thursday and Sunday mornings

  • Time: 10:00 a.m.

  • Where: Inside the West Barn


Remember, you can harvest extra produce from your own plot, from a designated Veggie Van plot, Plots 1, 5, 14, 45, 78E (split plot), 99 (raised bed), 109E (split plot), and the stand-alone plot in front of the West Compost Bins, or from a gardener's plot displaying a "Harvest for Veggie Van" sign.

  • Refrigerate: Lettuce, leafy greens, radishes, cucumbers, summer squash, and other perishable vegetables.

  • Leave on the counter (to the right of the scale): Tomatoes, winter squash, onions, potatoes, and other produce that does not require refrigeration.

  • Vase donations: Gail Gullickson is making flower arrangements for the veggie van and needs vases. Drop these in the barn too!


Our goal for 2026 is to donate at least 3,000 pounds of fresh produce!


Coming Up

There's never a dill moment around Rose Roots:

  • Remember to reserve Saturday September 19th for a HUGE work day! Volunteers from the LDS Church will be joining us in a massive volunteer day and LUNCH! Leadership is finalizing details on a work plan - the church's help will have long lasting benefits for the garden. We want gardeners to be present for the day to welcome volunteers and work alongside them. Afterwards, we'll relax together with a picnic lunch at the Apex Center! Look out for signs to RSVP!

  • Look out for an evite for a September 12th Service Day event - earn your service hours while we prep the garden for the big September 19th work day with the LDS Church.

  • Sunday September 20th will be the last music event of the season. If anyone is interested in financially sponsoring the music events, please reach out to garden leadership.

  • Join DUG at Rose Roots on September 26th from 9:00am-11:00am for a fall nature journaling workshop focused on seeds and seed pods:

    • Learn: Explore how plants disperse seeds, tying into the natural fall life cycle of plants; Participants learn seed dispersal methods and do a garden scavenger hunt to sketch/record seed shapes they find.

    • Instructor: Gigia Kolouch, through Nature Journal Denver — a community group focused on exploring urban gardens through art.

    • Purpose: Nature journaling builds mindfulness, observation skills, and a personal connection to nature.

    • Accessibility: Open to all skill levels (novice to experienced), with extra art supplies provided for shared use.

    • Cost: Pay what you can - Suggested $40, Minimum $5.

    • More information and registration here


Water Usage Update

We are currently 8% over our water usage target!  We've finally received some rain over the past couple of weeks so hopefully you've been using the help from the skies to cut back on watering sessions. Check out tips from DUG here, and look back at the previous newsletters for water usage tips.

  • Please remember to use the water meters from the shed at any time to help you know when your plot needs water. Or just use your finger and make sure that the soil is actually dry a few inches below the surface before watering.


This & That:

  • Want to stock up on fall cover crops and Colorado grown garlic? Check out Denver Urban Garden's fall supply sale here! These supplies will help you improve your soil health and prep for next season while you're still invigorated from this one.

  • Leadership has found the barn unlocked with no one in the garden multiple times in the past few weeks. Another time the lock box code was not scrambled when returning the keys. Please remember these important security issues if you access the barn or shed!

  • The Westside compost is closed for the season.

  • Remember to log any service hours here!


And finally!

I’ve started to plant my herbs in alphabetical order. People ask me how I find the time. I tell them “it’s next to the sage”.


Happy Gardening,

Rose Roots Leadership Team

Laura Bennett, Erin Newton, Tom Glum, Patty Sacks, Aaron Amaya, Gary Williams, Dan Graumiller, Jim Richards, Jack Nix, Osiris Mancera, Beth Green


Please contact Michelle, Newsletter Editor, HERE with newsletter additions, corrections, comments, compliments, gardening tips or humor.





 
 
 

Comments

bottom of page